Israeli Minister Meets Austrian Far-Right Party After Nazi Roots Apology

Israeli Minister for Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli met with leaders of the far-right Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ) in Vienna on Monday, November 9. The FPÖ has historical ties to Nazism, and Israel officially boycotts the party. This marks the first high-level meeting between an Israeli minister and the FPÖ. Chikli's visit was coordinated with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.

During his visit to the Austrian parliament, Chikli was received by Walter Rosenkranz, the second-highest-ranking member of the FPÖ. The meeting also included Harald Vilimsky, a representative of European Patriots, Israeli MK Ariel Kallner, and Eli Rosen, president of the Jewish community. Discussions focused on expanding Holocaust education in Austrian schools and launching joint programs to combat antisemitism. Chikli emphasized education as a means to foster closer ties and highlighted national identity, community, and family as shared values for cooperation.

Chikli expressed hope that engagement with the FPÖ would yield positive results, similar to his experiences with Spain's Vox party and France's National Rally. He noted that Vilimsky stated the meeting would not have happened without Chikli's two-year effort to build bridges. A turning point was FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl's September speech, in which he apologized to the Jewish people for the party's past, adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's working definition of antisemitism, and supported moving Austria's embassy to Jerusalem. Chikli described this speech as a "crossing the Rubicon" moment.

Chikli stated the meeting was the culmination of two years of work and part of a broader strategy to engage with European right-wing parties after decades of boycott. He cited a shared assessment of threats from the progressive left and radical Islamism as a basis for cooperation. A representative for the minister explained that the meeting was planned for two years, regardless of the caretaker government status. On the same day, Chikli and an FPÖ representative attended a Kristallnacht memorial ceremony in Graz. He also met with the Israeli ambassador to Austria during his visit.